NEW YORK — Having played in just four games this season, Mirza Teletovic is off to a rough start with the Brooklyn Nets.

The 27-year-old rookie power forward’s season got a little tougher on Friday evening as he was declared inactive for the first time this season against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Head coach Avery Johnson bluntly stated why.

“Everybody can’t get minutes when you have a team like our team,” Johnson said. “Who’s he gonna play in front of right now?

That’s a fair point made by Johnson as Kris Humphries is cemented as the starting power forward and Reggie Evans has done a good job off the bench as his backup. Additionally, Johnson has no problem sliding Gerald Wallace down to power forward if the matchup is favorable.

“We’re gonna be playing some teams that like to play small at 4 and I just think in his case, as I talked to him about this situation, he’s going to have an impact on our season at some point,” Johnson said. “We’ve got 72 more games to go and you never know how things can change.”

Adding to Teletovic’s trouble trying to find minutes is the fact that Jerry Stackhouse has given coach Johnson quality minutes when called to action. Stackhouse was viewed early in the season as the inactive guy and more of a player/coach, but he’s warranted rotation minutes.

Johnson also stated his desire to continue using three point guards with starter Deron Williams, backup C.J. Watson and rookie Tyshawn Taylor. Taylor will basically stay active just in case of emergency.

“I kind of like carrying three point guards,” Johnson said. “We had the one game (Tuesday at the Los Angeles Lakers) where Tyshawn was inactive, but you just never know. I think it’s always good to have three point guards on the roster.”

Things may change, but based on coach Johnson’s remarks prior to the Nets tipping off against the Clippers, Teletovic may be inactive for a few games to come.

Teletovic signed this offseason for the mini taxpayer mid-level exception of three years and roughly $9.7 million.

Josh Newman is SNYNets.com’s Field Reporter. Follow him on Twitter or up to the minute news and banter on all things related to the Brooklyn Nets and the NBA.